12 Places Mosquitoes Are Hiding Around Your Home

You probably know that mosquitoes lay eggs in stagnant water. What's surprising is how little water they need—just a tablespoon. If you leave an empty soda pop bottle or even the twist-off cap outside and it fills with rainwater, it can provide a habitat for mosquitoes. Here are other places they lay eggs and what you can do about it.

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1Tire Swing

Visions of America

An old tire hanging by a rope from a tree branch makes for a classic yard fixture, plus it's a cheap way to entertain kids and recycles a tire in the process. The problem with tire swings is that tires hold water. This is annoying when you're swinging and stagnant water splashes on you. It also provides a haven for mosquitoes. The easy fix: drill a hole in the bottom of the tire so the water runs out.

2Bird Bath

Brett Martin

Even if you're not a regular bird watcher, a bird bath can provide a nice focal point in your backyard. To keep the fixture from becoming a mosquito motel, change the water and clean the bath weekly by scrubbing the surface with a soft bristle brush and rinsing it. This kills any mosquito eggs or larvae.

3Kids' Toys

Brett Martin

It's easy to overlook the wagons, toy trucks and sandbox toys that your kids play with and then inevitably leave outside. If you need another reason to make your children finally learn to clean up after themselves, then consider that a beach pail, the bed of a toy dump truck, or even the open cockpit of a plastic fighter plane hold enough water to be attractive to mosquitoes. Bring them in every night, and if everybody forget, them make sure to dump out the standing water and hose them off after a rain.

4Wading Pools

Large swimming pools, with their chlorine and filtration systems, are not good breeding places for mosquitoes—if you maintain them properly. Wading pools are a different story. Water gets left here, idle and untreated. It's paradise for those biting pests. Empty portable pools at least once a week and wash them clean with a hose.

5Clogged Gutters

Brett Martin

When water can't flow to your downspouts, you've got multiple problems looming. When it rains, the water can spill over the gutters and leak into your basement. In winter that water can freeze on your front steps and sidewalk, presenting a slipping hazard. And during the dog days, water stuck in your gutters offers a place for mosquitoes to breed. Clean the leaves, twigs, and trash from your gutters so the water will drain properly. Then install a gutter guard to keep them debris-free.

6Plant Saucers

Brett Martin

The saucers under your potted plants that catch the water that drains when you give your plants a drink can provide a place for mosquitoes to lay eggs. That's because the water can sit for a week or more; meanwhile, if it's outdoors, then the saucer is continually refilled during rains. Tip the saucer to drain the water and deprive the mosquitoes of a place to reproduce.

7Plastic Tarps

Brett Martin

Tarps are great for covering firewood or anything else you want to keep dry. But that means the rainwater ends up on the tarp. If the water sits in the nooks and crevices for a week or longer, you can bet that mosquito eggs will be hatching in it. Pull the tarp tight to eliminate places for water to pool.

8Water Gardens

Brett Martin

Few sounds are more soothing than water flowing in a backyard water garden. But, of course, you can bet mosquitoes will find a source of this much still water. You can add fish that eat mosquito larvae, such as goldfish or guppies, which helps. You can also use Mosquito Dunks, which cost about $7 for a two-pack at home improvement and hardware stores. Just drop a Dunk into the water to release a natural mosquito larvicide that kills larvae but does not harm fish, birds, pets, or wildlife. One Dunk will work for up to 30 days.

9Pet Bowls

Fifi and Fido need their water when they're outside playing, especially in the hot summer. If you keep an outside water bowl for your pets, change the water daily.

10Canoes, Rafts, and Kayaks

Tuah Roslan

These water toys can be a lot of fun, but leave the water in the lake or river. Water that gets inside a canoe, raft, or kayak and sits in there will be attractive to mosquitoes. Store the man-powered watercraft in your garage or outbuilding to keep it dry, and store it upside down so any water will run out.

11Old Buckets

Brett Martin

This seems obvious, but it's easy to take an old 5-gallon bucket or other container outside for a DIY project and then forget about it. Stay on guard for any such thing left outside that'll collect water, and therefore mosquitoes.

12Uncovered Garbage Cans

Brett Martin

If you keep your garbage containers or recycling bins outside, make sure to keep the lid on. This keeps out the rain, which is especially important for recycling bins that are emptied every two weeks instead of weekly. Most containers now have the lids attached, so you don't have to search for the top, making it easier than ever to keep them closed and rain-free.

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